Principle 25 · from the Enchiridion
Accept the price of your choices
A result may require time or compromises you would not choose. Consider the tradeoff before comparing your path with someone else’s.
Source passage (English)
The passage is shown in English. The explanation and example below are modern interpretations for this site.
Is anyone preferred before you at an entertainment, or in a compliment, or in being admitted to a consultation? If these things are good, you ought to be glad that he has gotten them; and if they are evil, don't be grieved that you have not gotten them. And remember that you cannot, without using the same means [which others do] to acquire things not in our own control, expect to be thought worthy of an equal share of them. For how can he who does not frequent the door of any [great] man, does not attend him, does not praise him, have an equal share with him who does? You are unjust, then, and insatiable, if you are unwilling to pay the price for which these things are sold, and would have them for nothing. For how much is lettuce sold? Fifty cents, for instance. If another, then, paying fifty cents, takes the lettuce, and you, not paying it, go without them, don't imagine that he has gained any advantage over you. For as he has the lettuce, so you have the fifty cents which you did not give. So, in the present case, you have not been invited to such a person's entertainment, because you have not paid him the price for which a supper is sold. It is sold for praise; it is sold for attendance. Give him then the value, if it is for your advantage. But if you would, at the same time, not pay the one and yet receive the other, you are insatiable, and a blockhead. Have you nothing, then, instead of the supper? Yes, indeed, you have: the not praising him, whom you don't like to praise; the not bearing with his behavior at coming in.
What this means
Epictetus explains that many social rewards come with a price. Influence, access, and recognition often require flattery, networking rituals, or compromises of time and independence. Recognizing a cost you chose not to pay can help explain why the result differs from what you hoped for.
It is not a reason to distrust every success. Epictetus simply asks us to look at the whole tradeoff. We can choose the cost if the reward seems worthwhile, or keep what the other path would require us to give up. Envy often appears when we want the result without the process that usually comes with it.
You rarely know another person's entire path, so do not assume their success proves they sacrificed their values. Focus on the terms you can actually examine in your own choice: time, obligations, and what you would need to change. Accepting one tradeoff also leaves you free to reconsider it later.
An everyday example
A coworker becomes more visible by attending every optional event with leadership. You choose to protect family time and then feel overlooked.
Name the tradeoff honestly. Your choice may mean missing some networking opportunities. If you truly want the other result, consider whether you also want its process. If not, accept what your own choice preserved.
Reflection Question
Whose result are you envying? If you look at the whole process, would you want to pay the same price?